To date, many media editing applications have been proposed for editing digital graphic designs, image editing, audio editing, and video editing. These applications provide graphical designers, media artists, and other users with the tools for creating and editing media presentations. Examples of such applications include Final Cut Pro® and iMovie®, both sold by Apple® Inc.
Several of the media editing applications provide editing tools that allow the users to perform keyframe editing. Typically, keyframe editing is done on attributes that are associated with a particular media content. The value of an attribute is defined at a particular keyframe by its position on a line graph where the line graph connects one or more keyframes for representing the changing value of that particular attribute over the same period in which its corresponding media content spans.
Each keyframe is identified as a control point that conveys the particular location and value of one attribute of a media content. A user of a media editing application must know how to manipulate these control points with a certain amount of precision to create desired effects. For instance, to modify the shape of the line in between two keyframes, each control point has corresponding Bezier handles in some prior media editing applications. These Bezier handles are pulled, pushed, and dragged in various directions in the coordinate chart to affect the curve of the line between the keyframes. A user must not only understand how to manipulate these control points and their associated Bezier handles but also possess the patience and drawings skills to create a desired effect between keyframes. Furthermore, if a user wishes to create the same keyframes and effects for a second or multiple other attributes, the user must repeat the same editing operations for each attribute.
Therefore, there is a need for a more simplified way of performing keyframe editing. This includes the ability to affect multiple keyframes for multiple attributes to avoid repetitive editing to achieve the same results for multiple attributes. Also, there is a need for a media editing application that allow its user to perform simple to complex keyframe editing with minimal drawing skills and without having to understand how control points and Bezier handles work.